Finance and Accounting Programs Offered by Pennsylvania State University-World Campus
Pennsylvania State University-World Campus is also featured in our ranking of the Top 35 Most Affordable Online Bachelor’s in Finance.
With two undergraduate, one certificate and two graduate programs, the Pennsylvania State University-World Campus offers options designed for students at all levels who have an interest in finance or accounting. The first is a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Accounting. It includes a curriculum that prepares students for taking a professional exam to get a license when they graduate. Students who do not transfer any classes will take 120 credits from the university. Those classes include Auditing, Cost Accounting, Federal Taxation, Business Strategy and Financial and Managerial Accounting for Decision Making.
Another program designed for undergrads is a BS in Finance, which also features 120 credits of work. Students take a minimum of 96 credits of finance and major courses and some general education classes. The program teaches them how to create and analyze financial statements, perform minor accounting tasks, follow federal and state laws and manage the investments of their clients. Principles of Marketing, Supply Chain Management, Introduction to Business Information Systems and Basic Management Concepts are some of the core courses they will take. Their advanced courses include Financial Statements and Management Decisions, Intermediate Macroeconomic Analysis and Money and Banking.
One of the two graduate programs offered online is a Master of Professional Accounting (MPA). Unlike the undergraduate programs that let students pick and choose from classes, all students in this program take the same 10 courses. Two of the first courses they take are Auditing Theory and Practice and Business Tax Planning Theory and Practice. Students learn the theories behind those processes and then practice using the software and techniques. The program also includes Financial Reporting, Financial Statement Analysis, Advanced UCC and Commercial Transactions, and Accounting Information and Decision Systems. Students end the program with a capstone course on forensic accounting and litigation support.
The other graduate program available online is a Master of Finance. Though it also features 30 credits of courses, the classes that students take are different. They will do a one-week residency on a campus of the university near Philadelphia and do all their other work on the web. Analysis of Financial Markets, Current Issues in Corporate Finance, Financial Decision Processes, Portfolio Management and Research in Security Valuation are some of their classes.
Through the Pennsylvania State University-World Campus, students can also earn a graduate certificate in accounting. It features one required course: Auditing Theory and Practice and then asks students to pick three electives. They can transfer the credits earned in the certificate program to the MPA program too. Some of their elective options include Governmental and Nonprofit Accounting, Strategic Cost Management and Business Tax Planning Theory and Practice.
About Pennsylvania State University-World Campus
Pennsylvania State University-World Campus is an online university also known as Penn State World Campus and Penn State Online. Pennsylvania State University, also known as Penn State, introduced distance education programs in the early 1890s as a way to help farmers in the state fulfill their educational goals. The College of Education at the university later launched a study that helped it develop better distance education programs. After the university added online classes, it transitioned from correspondence programs to full degree programs that were available online. Those programs later became Penn State Online. U.S. News and World Report included the virtual campus on lists of the best business and Master of Business Administration programs available online and the best universities for veterans.
Pennsylvania State University-World Campus Accreditation Details
All the finance and accounting programs available through the Penn State World Campus have accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). The virtual campus has the same accreditation that Penn State does, which comes from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). Online students who need financial assistance can submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) before they start at the university to use this accreditation and get financial aid.
Pennsylvania State University-World Campus Application Requirements
Undergrads applying to Penn State Online need to fill out a form to self-report their academic records. It may contact students later and request that they submit transcripts to verify the information they shared. Both the finance and accounting programs accept students with a high school diploma or GED. They will take eight courses and then declare a major in one of those subjects. Students only need to apply online and then submit some type of transcript.
Graduate students applying to Penn State Online need to meet the application deadline of July 15 for the fall semester. The university will accept applications up through the middle of November for the spring semester and the middle of March for the spring semester. Students need to have either a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited school or a degree from a college overseas that has similar accreditation.
Those who have a degree outside of accounting must take six specific courses from the university before they can graduate. Penn State Online asks for transcripts that show their last two years of classes and grades, an application, application fee and contact information for two references. They will also upload a resume to their application.
Tuition and Financial Aid
At Penn State Online, undergrads pay $576 per credit if they take fewer than 12 credits. Those who take 12 or more pay $6,994 each semester. When students complete 60 credits, their costs increase to $617 per credit hour or $7,549 per semester. Graduate students pay rates based on the credits they take rather than how many courses they took through the university. Their costs come to $951 per credit hour or $11,412 per semester. Both rates include the university’s technology fee. Students can set up a payment plan with the university, even if they get financial aid. This allows them to pay their tuition in monthly installments.
The financial aid that goes to incoming and current students comes from the federal government. Students can use several types of loans and qualify for grants when they use the FAFSA. Penn State Online offers scholarships too and gives those funds to students who received an acceptance letter and filed the FAFSA. Students applying to the finance and accounting programs at the Pennsylvania State University-World Campus should submit the FAFSA to get financial aid.